pasta + sauce

A pasta dish from what was on hand: penne, tomato, onion, garlic, sausage, ricotta, & fresh basil

There are some recipes I go back to over and over again, some I try once, others I make seasonally or for special occasions, and then there are staples that fall into the first category as well as the walk-into-anyone’s-home-and-make-a-version-with-my-eyes-closed dishes.

We are humans with finite amounts of time. Time in the day, the week… our entire lives. And though I would love to give my time to making every single element of a meal from scratch, it’s usually not realistic or even possible - even during quarantine. And some days I just don’t have any energy. And that’s ok. Enter the magic that is jarred sauce and dried pasta. If you’ve never moved past the box of mac + powdered cheese section of the pasta aisle, it’s time to expand your repertoire. It’s easier than you realize, and pasta is one of the quickest hot dinners to whip up.

Where to begin? Pasta shape and corresponding sauce. Alison Roman has a great and simple chart over at Bon Appétit to help if you‘re not sure. Imho, fat, tubular pasta with ridges is the best. 9/10 times I want a hearty, comforting, thick, tomato-based sauce and they pair best with penne, rigatoni, and ziti rigate (the ridges are important and the box usually denotes this with rigate in the title). Not only is the texture of the ridges wonderful for mouth feel, they also grab onto the sauce and pull it close, hugging out all the feels we’re currently starved from in our social lives. If this makes you a little sad, it’s ok. Be sad, feel your feelings.

Next, read the labels… yep, gotta get on board with what’s going into your body.

• Sauces to avoid use high sugar and sodium, canola or soybean oil, artificial or toxic additives

• Pastas to avoid use chemicals and artificial or toxic additives, are pale/white in color

• Sauces to seek out use fresh tomatoes or cream, olive oil, clean ingredients in general - clean loosely defined as ingredients from natural sources instead of those that are highly processed

• Pastas to seek out use durum semolina wheat, are a rich cream to amber-ish yellow in color (for my gluten-free friends, go with what you know and like because you know much more than I do!)

  *Alternatively, get fresh pasta when you can find it. In NYC, I swoon hardcore for Eataly and will pick up fresh pasta or pizza dough for special occasions

Of course, the best thing to do is buy what fits your budget. Period. Pasta + sauce can be as cheap or expensive as you like. Depending on time, budget, what you have in the fridge/freezer, time of year, and who’s coming over - remember dinner parties?! * sigh * - there are a couple things I do to personalize my sauces. I like to sauté onions or shallots in butter and/or olive oil. Mushrooms sometimes join if they happen to be in the fridge. I sometimes add bacon or sausage or chicken to the pan. Then I add jarred sauce and simmer while my pasta cooks. Sometimes I add cheese, sometimes I add frozen peas at the very end once the heat is turned off. But every single time, this sauté-ing of onions, veggies, garlic, and meat then simmering with the sauce method levels up dinner in the best way.

The way I like to make dried pasta is to cook it at a rolling boil for about 4 minutes less than the directions indicate, then start checking for al dente-ness. I check every 30 seconds until it’s exactly where I want it. Do. Not. Rinse. The. Noodles. The starch from the boiling bath is what will make the sauce want to make love to the pasta and I’m not really into a-sexual food, but you do you.

Enough blabbing… here’s my favorite pasta+sauce, aka the recipe that made my boyfriend fall in love with me… so he says.

Sharon’s rigatoni alla vodka e pancetta

• 1-2 Tbsp EVOO

• 1 lg shallot, minced

• 6 oz baby bella mushrooms, sliced

• 2-4 lg cloves garlic, minced/pressed/grated - adjust to your taste

• 3/4 lb thick cut bacon, cubed or cut into small strips

• 24-26 oz jar of vodka sauce (sizes differ depending on the brand)

• 1 16 oz package rigatoni

• 1 Tbsp kosher salt

Optional

• crushed red pepper flakes

• Parmigiano-Reggiano

• flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped

• 1/2-3/4 cup fresh or frozen peas

Highly encouraged

• music

• wine

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Turn on music that makes you feel good about life

2. While the water boils, heat EVOO in a large skillet over med heat. Add shallots and cook until they just begin to brown. Turn down heat to med-low. Add mushrooms and bacon; cook until browned. Create a little well in the center of the pan and add garlic. If you want some heat, now is the time to add a pinch or two of crushed red pepper flakes. Stir in the center for 30-60 seconds - enough for the garlic to become fragrant but not burn - then stir into the shallot/mushroom/bacon mixture. *Note: You may not want all the bacon fat - spoon out as much or as little as you like

3. Empty the vodka sauce into the skillet. Refill about 1/4 of the jar with water, shake vigorously with the lid on to retrieve allllll the saucy goodness, and pour into the skillet. Stir lovingly and sing along with the music. Simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally

4. Add 1 Tbsp salt to the pot of boiling water just before adding pasta. Carefully pour the rigatoni into the boiling water and set a timer for 4 minutes less than the packaging suggests. Here’s where I’m yelling at google for the 10th time to set a timer and being told she “didn’t quite get that…” Keep any lids far from reach - they’re not invited. Stir pasta gently here and there so as to keep it from sticking to the bottom. Opening a bottle of wine is perfect right about now. When the timer goes off, fish out a noodle and blow to cool before testing. Pinch it first - if too firm, it’s not ready. Retrieve and take a bite every 30 seconds until the mouthfeel is just right and not anywhere near mushy. Generally, my pasta is perfect anywhere between 2-4 minutes less than suggested. You just have to check and trust yourself

5. Turn off the heat under the skillet. Separate pasta immediately from the water using your favorite technique - I’ve been converted to using this spider strainer over dumping everything into a collander in the sink - use what you have and do what works best for your space. Carefully fold pasta into the skillet sauce so as not to break apart any rigatoni. If you want to stir in some green peas for added color/texture, now is the time. I like them barely heated through and bright green so this is why I add them now

6. Serve immediately and top with your favorite Parmigiano-Reggiano and flat-leaf parsley. A simple salad is nice on the side, but everyone is here for the pasta

Pasta+sauce is sure to impress and will bring loads of comfort at an otherwise unsure and uncomfortable time. And don’t worry, I have many more pasta recipes I can’t wait to share. I sure miss dinner parties but they’ll be back.

xo, ~sharon